Tip holder integrated with polishing-tips for concrete polishing machine

ABSTRACT

A polishing device is provided which is attachable to a tip holder plate of a concrete polishing machine to polish a concrete surface. The polishing device includes a tip holder that is compression-molded using a heat resistant plastic material to include a plurality of tip support portions. A plurality of polishing tips are inserted into and bonded with the tip support portions of the tip holder with the polishing tips protruding out from the tip support portions when unworn. After the polishing tips are worn an initial amount from polishing the concrete surface, the tip support portions of the tip holder and the polishing tips are adapted to collectively grind the concrete surface.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119 of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2011-0101133, filed on Oct. 5, 2011, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, which application is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a tip holder integrated with polishing tips that is attachable to a tip holder plate of a concrete polishing machine.

2. Description of the Related Art

Generally, to polish a concrete surface C clean and smooth, a concrete polishing machine 1 having a plurality of tip holders 10 bonded with polishing tips 20 on tip holder plate 3 at a certain intervals is used. The polishing work is conducted by rotating the tip holder plate 3, which in turn rotates the tip holder 10 and polishing tips 20 to grind the concrete surface C.

However, the conventional tip holder 10 shown in FIG. 1, which is provided with polishing tips 20 at certain intervals, has disadvantages. For example, with reference to FIG. 1, hollow tip supports 11 in which the polishing tips 20 are coupled are formed protrusively at certain intervals on the bottom circumference and the polishing tips 20 and tip holder 10 are formed as independent members, the tip holder 10 and the hollow tip supports being injection molded with a plastic resin having weak resistance to heat, such as nylon, PE, PP, or ABS, and their function is simply hold and support the polishing tips 20. As such, the tip supports 11 of the tip holder 10 cannot polish a concrete surface C together with the polishing tips 20, when the polishing tips 20 have been worn down.

In addition, when polishing a concrete surface C using the polishing tips 20 attached to the tip holder 10 made of a plastic material, for example, nylon, PE, PP or ABS, which have weak resistance to heat, as shown in FIG. 2 a and FIG. 2 b, the bottom of the polishing tips 20, that is, the polishing tips 20 protruding out of the tip supports 11 of the tip holder 10 is worn down to the end by friction with the concrete surface C. At this condition, by the heat generated by the friction between the end of the tip holder 10, that is the tip supports 11 and polishing tips 20 and between the concrete surface C, the end of the tip supports 11 of the tip holder 10, made of a plastic material having a weak resistance to heat, melts down and leaves swirling marks with the molten resin from the tip support 11 of the tip holder 10 on the concrete surface C.

Furthermore, when the swirling marks are formed on the concrete surface C by the end of the tip supports 11 of the tip holder 10, made of a plastic resin having weak resistance to heat, for example, nylon, PE, PP, or ABS and molten into a ball-shape, by the heat generated from grinding the concrete surface C together with the polishing tips 20, extra polishing work is required to remove the swirling marks from the concrete surface C.

BRIEF SUMMARY

Embodiments of the present invention provide a tip holder, and more particularly, a tip holder, integrated with polishing tips, which is attachable to a tip holder plate of a concrete polishing machine. To replace conventional tip holders, which are made of the plastic materials having weak resistance to heat, such as nylon, PE, PP, ABS, etc., and installed with separate polishing tips in tip holes thereof, the tip holder is compression molded with a heat-resistant material with integrated polishing tips. Beneficially, the ends of tip supports of the tip holder are well adapted to not melt by heat generated during polishing, but rather pulverize and polish the concrete surface together with the polishing tips, preventing the swirling marks otherwise formed on a concrete surface by the tip holders of conventional systems, which become molten when the polishing tips are worn down. In addition, another benefit of embodiments of the present invention is that the compression molded tip holder with integrated polishing tips can help polish the concrete surface as an assistant polishing means, improving the polishing performance and extending the lifecycle of the polishing tips.

According to embodiments of the present invention, the tip holder is made of a plastic material and installable on a tip holder plate of a concrete polishing machine to polish concrete surfaces with polishing tips which are inserted and bonded with the tip holder, in a manner that the polishing tips protruding from the tip holder are ground while polishing the concrete surface together with the tip holder, so that the scratch of plastic swirl marks otherwise left on the surface by the tip holder and polishing tips can be prevented. In some embodiments, the tip holder is characterized by being made of melamine resin or phenol resin, or in another example embodiment, a mixture of 55% of phenol resin, 23% of silicon carbide (SiC), 11% of carbon (C), and 11% of talc.

To reiterate, embodiments of the present invention provide a tip holder integrated with polishing tips and made of a heat resistant material by compression molding. Beneficially, the ends of the tip supports of the tip holder are well adapted to not melt by heat generated during polishing, but rather pulverize and polish the concrete surface together with the polishing tips, preventing the swirling marks which can otherwise be formed on the concrete surface when polishing with conventional polishing machines. In addition, the compression molded tip holder with integrated polishing tips can help polish the concrete surface as an assistant polishing means, improving the polishing performance and extending the lifecycle of the polishing tips.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic, perspective, exploded view of a conventional tip holder.

FIG. 2 a shows a conventional tip holder installed on a tip holder plate of a concrete polishing machine.

FIG. 2 b shows the operational position of a concrete polishing machine and polished concrete surface using a conventional tip holder.

FIG. 3 is a schematic, perspective view of an embodiment of a tip holder in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an exploded view of an example embodiment of the tip holder in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 5 shows the tip holder of FIGS. 3 and 4 installed on a tip holder plate of a concrete polishing machine.

FIGS. 6 a and 6 b show the operating position of a concrete polishing machine and a polished concrete surface using an example embodiment of the tip holder in accordance with the present invention.

DETAIL DESCRIPTION

The tip holder integrated with polishing tips (hereinafter, shall be referred to as “the tip holder”) in accordance with embodiments of the present invention is described in detail referring to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 3 is a schematic, perspective view and FIG. 4 is an exploded view of an embodiment of the tip holder in accordance with the present invention. FIG. 5 shows an embodiment of the tip holder in accordance with the present invention installed on a tip holder plate of a concrete polishing machine, and FIGS. 6 a and 6 b show the operating position of a concrete polishing machine and a polished concrete surface using an example embodiment of the tip holder in accordance with the present invention

Before describing the tip holder 10 a in accordance with embodiments of the present invention in detail, the same or similar numbering scheme will apply to the same or similar structure of the conventional tip holder 10 described herein.

The tip holder 10 a in accordance with embodiments of the present invention is attachable to a tip holder plate 3 of a concrete polishing machine 1 to rotate with the tip holder plate 3 driven by the concrete polishing machine 1 and to support and hold polishing tips 20 which polish concrete surfaces C smoothly. With reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, the tip holder 10 a is compression molded from a heat resistant material, inserted and integrated with the polishing tips 20, so that the ends of tip supports 11 of the tip holder 10 a are well adapted to not melt by heat generated during polishing work, but rather pulverize and polish the concrete surface C together with the polishing tips 20. This is quite different from conventional tip holders 10 (FIGS. 1 through 2 b), which are injection molded from plastic materials having weak resistance to heat, such as nylon, PE, PP, ABS, etc., and installed with separable polishing tips 20, which melt down and leave swirling marks from the molten resin from the tip supports 11 of the tip holder 10 on the concrete surface C when the polishing tips 20 are worn down

Here, along the circumference of the bottom of the tip holder 10 a, the tip holder 10 a is formed with the polishing tips 20 as a single body. In some embodiments, three to five tip supports 11 are formed at a certain intervals to fix the polishing tips 20 as an integrated body. In one particular embodiment, four tip supports 11 are formed at 90 degree intervals along the circumference of the bottom of the tip holder 10 a.

At the topside of the tip holder 10 a, a concave-shaped holder socket 30 may be provided to fix the tip holder 10 a to the tip holder plate 3 of a concrete polishing machine 1 by being bonded with the outer circumference of the tip holder 10 a with adhesive 31. The holder socket 30 may be injection molded with a plastic material that is the same as a similar socket that is typically injection molded on a topside of the conventional tip holder 10 as an integrated body.

A topside of the holder socket 30 may be provided with a piece of Velcro tape 35 to bond the tip holder 10 a to another piece of Velcro tape 5 provided on the bottom of the tip holder plate 3 of the concrete polishing machine 1.

As described above, the tip holder 10 a, compression molded to enable the polishing tips 20 to be supported and fixed in the tip supports 11, is configured such that the ends of the tip supports 11 of the tip holder 10 a do not melt down by heat generated during polishing operation, but rather pulverize and polish the concrete surface C together with the polishing tips 20, since they are made of a heat resistance plastic material, for example, 100% of melamine or phenol resin, or a composition of melamine or phenol resin added with, for example, silicon carbide (SiC), carbon (C), and talc as additives for improving the strength and polishing performance of the polishing tips. For example, in one particular embodiment, the material may be 55% of melamine or phenol resin, 23% of silicon carbide (SiC), 11% of carbon (C), and 11% of talc.

In addition, the polishing tips 20 which are formed as an integrated body in the tip supports 11 of the tip holder 10 a, are molded in the tip supports 11 of the tip holder 10 a and fixed on the tip holder plate 3 of a concrete polishing machine 1 and rotated to polish concrete surfaces C. The polishing tips may be formed in a cylindrical body having a convex bottom, and may be comprised of phenol or epoxy resin, silicon carbide (SiC), artificial diamond, tin oxide (SnO2), carbon (C), and Chromium (Cr) 203. An exemplary constitution is 44% of phenol or epoxy resin, 22% of silicon carbide (SiC), 11% of artificial diamond, 11% of tin oxide (SnO2), 6% of carbon (C), and 6% of Chromium 203 (Cr).

With the tip holder 10 a integrated with the polishing tips 20 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention and fixed to the tip holder plate 3 of a concrete polishing machine 1, as shown in FIG. 5, driving the concrete polishing machine 1 to rotate the tip holder plate 3 on which four tip holders 10 a are arranged at 90 degree intervals, then, as shown in FIG. 6 a, the tip holder 10 a and the polishing tips 20 formed in the tip supports 11 rotate in the same direction as that of the tip holder plate 3. The operator of the concrete polishing machine 1 will move the machine slowly on the concrete surface with the polishing tips 20 contacted on the concrete surface C to polish the concrete surface C.

During the polishing operation, when the bottom ends of the polishing tips 20 protruding out of the tip supports 11 of the tip holder 10 a are worn out by friction with the concrete surface C up to the end of the tip supports 11 of the tip holder 10 a, the lowest part of the tip holder 10 a, that is, the end of the tip supports 11 will begin grinding the concrete surface C together with the polishing tips 20. Different from conventional tip holders 10 (FIGS. 1 to 2 b) made of a plastic resin which melts down by friction with the concrete surface C when the polishing tips 20 protruding out of the tip holder 10 are worn out, the tip holder 10 a in accordance with embodiments of the present invention does not make swirling marks because the ends of the tip supports 11 do not melt down but support the polishing tips 20, and the tip holder 10 a formed with the polishing tips 20 as a single body also polishes the concrete surface C together with the tip supports 11 and the polishing tips 20, achieving clean and smooth surface and increased life span of the polishing tips 20.

While it is apparent that the illustrative embodiments of the invention herein disclosed fulfills the objectives stated above, it will be appreciated that numerous modifications and other embodiments may be devised by those skilled in the art. In general, in the following claims, the terms used should not be construed to limit the claims to the specific embodiments disclosed in the specification and the claims, but should be construed to include all possible embodiments along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. 

1. A polishing device attachable to a tip holder plate of a concrete polishing machine to polish a concrete surface, the polishing device comprising: a tip holder that is compression-molded using a heat resistant plastic material, the tip holder including a plurality of tip support portions; and a plurality of polishing tips, each polishing tip inserted into and bonded with a respective one of the tip support portions of the tip holder with the polishing tip protruding out from the tip support portion when in an unworn configuration, and wherein, after the polishing tips are worn an initial amount from polishing the concrete surface, the tip support portions of the tip holder and the polishing tips are adapted to collectively grind the concrete surface.
 2. The polishing device of claim 1 wherein the tip support portions of the tip holder are configured to pulverize and polish the concrete surface together with the polishing tips after the polishing tips are worn the initial amount.
 3. The polishing device of claim 1 wherein the tip holder is compression-molded with three to five polishing tip support portions at intervals on a peripheral area to integrate and hold the polishing tips.
 4. The polishing device of claim 1, further comprising: a concave-shaped holder socket adhered to the tip holder for attaching the polishing device to the tip holder plate of the concrete polishing machine.
 5. The polishing device of claim 4, further comprising: a hook and loop fastener device provided on an upper surface of the holder socket to removably attach the holder socket and tip holder to the tip holder plate of the concrete polishing machine.
 6. The polishing device of claim 1 wherein the tip holder is compression-molded with melamine resin or phenol resin.
 7. The polishing device of claim 1 wherein the tip holder is compression-molded with a mixture of melamine resin or phenol resin, silicon carbide (SiC), carbon (C), and talc.
 8. The polishing device of claim 7 wherein the mixture consists essentially of 55% of melamine resin or phenol resin, 23% of silicon carbide (SiC), 11% of carbon (C), and 11% of talc.
 9. The polishing device of claim 1 wherein the polishing tips are made of a mixture of phenol or epoxy resin, silicon carbide (SiC), artificial diamond, tin oxide (SnO2), carbon (C), and chromium (Cr).
 10. The polishing device of claim 9 wherein the mixture consists essentially of 44% of phenol or epoxy, 22% of silicon carbide (SiC), 11% of artificial diamond, 11% of tin oxide (S_(n)O₂), and 6% of chromium (Cr). 